Blonde Fur
An extensive transformation, costing 10.7m euros that will bear the results of 2026, but will yield at least 9m euros to repeated annual benefits from 2027, the Furlis Group announced at the General Meeting of shareholders. President Vassilis Furlis accelerated the long-term strategic plan before the shareholders, calling in the 2026 year "transition, investment and transformation".
The move comes to the wake of a strong 2025 – sales of 594m euros, an increase of 12%, EBIT 30.7m euros with a margin of 5.2% – but under pressure of deterioration on the Romanian market, which creates additional damage of 4-5m euros compared to initial forecasts.
Ten stores closing
Giannis Vasilakos announced the closure of about ten loss-making shops in all countries and concepts within 2026. The cost of this move is EUR 3,9 million and includes fixed assets deletions, employee compensation, IFRS impact and penalties from early termination of leases. As of 2027, the measure is expected to yield EUR 3,5 million annual benefits.
The announcement reflects the logic he described as "fast reflexes" in retail: many stores have turned to a negative result due to the collapse of consumer confidence in Romania and this cannot be left without intervention.
Voluntary and centralisation
At the same time, a €3.5 million voluntary exit programme was announced, enabling workers to leave on favourable terms. In combination with the centralisation of services – IT, finance, HR, procurement and law – the programme concerns estimated 250 to 300 eligible jobs at group level.
The centralisation, costing 4.4m euros, aims to be completed by September 2026, with full utilization from 1 January 2027. The annual benefits are estimated at EUR 3.4 million.
"The voluntary beneficiaries are 250 to 300 persons, totaling 4,400 employees of the group. But that does not mean that so many will choose it," stressed Mr. Vassilakos, appreciating that in practice the number will not exceed a hundred. "Statistics, no voluntary has led to anything different," he said, adding that the cost of the program is not expected to exceed 3.5-4m euros.
The CEO explained that redundancies are explicitly excluded, particularly for workers in the group ten, fifteen or twenty years. Volunteering is aimed at those who do not want to join the new operating model – either because of age and proximity to the pension, or because they choose to move elsewhere. The package offered reaches more than twenty wages, with the total benefit, taking into account tax exemptions, of approximately two and a half years' remuneration.
For those who choose to stay, Vasilakos left open the possibility of changing roles or moving within the organization, with parallel reskilling. "There is nothing more powerful than an old expert who is willing to change," he noted, stressing that experience is the only element that is not being bought.
Holland & Barrett: Transaction close to closure
The third part of the transformation concerns the completion of the agreement with Golden Age Capital for Wellness Market and Holland & Barrett stores. The EUR 2.4 million transaction is in the dual diligence phase and is expected to close within the month. From 2027 it will yield 2.2m euros of recurring benefits.
The management stressed that the relationship with Golden Age Capital allows the group to remain in the health and well-being sector – which grows at a rate of 30% per year – using the network of pharmacies representing 80% of the market, while tackling the pressure of 22.4 million euros that the industry created in the results.
At EUR 645 million sales
Despite the challenges, Mr Vasilakos confirmed the forecasts for the total of 2026: sales at 645m euros, gross margin at 46.5% and EBIT 15-17m euros, corresponding to 2.3%-2.6% on sales.
By June 6, the group records a sales increase of 8% and like-for-like 4%.
Οι επιδόσεις ανά κλάδο αποτυπώνουν ανισομέρεια: στον οικιακό εξοπλισμό (IKEA) η αύξηση είναι 4% με like-for-like 1%, με πίεση κυρίως στην Ελλάδα, ενώ Κύπρος και Βουλγαρία κινούνται καλύτερα. Στα αθλητικά είδη η ανάπτυξη παραμένει ισχυρή με +16% σε πωλήσεις και like-for-like 8%, με τον όμιλο να κερδίζει μερίδια αγοράς στην Ελλάδα. Η Holland & Barrett ξεχωρίζει με αύξηση πωλήσεων 26% και like-for-like 17%.
